Terminus
by Saya Moonshadow
Summary: In the end, there's nothing but her and you.  VakamaNokama oneshot.


**I'm bored and writing again. GEE, WHAT ELSE IS NEW?**

**Disclaimer: Do I LOOK like I own anything?!**

**Summary: In the end, there's nothing but her and you. VakamaNokama oneshot.**

**Terminus  
By: Saya Moonshadow**

_i._

In the beginning, you are just a humble mask maker in Ta-Metru. The best there is. Only the absolute hardest jobs go to you. Because there's no one else who could do them.

That's why Turaga Dume came to you about the Vahi - the legendary Mask of Time. Because of your fame.

Shortly after your eighth failed attempt, Toa Lhikan comes to you and gives you a small package. It's cold and hard and heavy. And then he is snatched from the air, right before your very eyes.

You make your way to the Temple, as Lhikan told you to, and bump into a Le-Matoran. "Fire-spitter? What are YOU doing here?" he asks.

_ii._

The light engulfs you, and it's warm. You feel your body changing shape, your legs lengthening, your shoulders getting broader. When it finally lets you go, you are something you didn't even dream of.

The weapon you choose is simple and practical - a disk launcher can be used to launch more than just disks. It can also be used as a jet pack.

You notice your companions - _new teammates_ - all choosing their weapons. The pretty one, the one who you had been staring at before the light hit you, has chosen a pair of long hydro blades. She walks past Matau, who has just slammed into the wall, laughing as she does so.

She is more than just pretty. She is beautiful.

Her name is Nokama, she tells you. "Nokama," you repeat, and she nods and smiles. It's very similar to your own name.

_iii._

You are not a leader, although everyone seems to think that you are.

You just want to save Toa Lhikan, the "heart of Metru Nui". For what else could it be? Toa Lhikan is the lodestone, the backbone, of the island; he is what makes it what it is. He is what has kept it safe for longer than anyone can remember.

Nokama tells you to be a leader. Actually, what she says is that SOMEONE has to do it.

But before she can finish the sentence, you cut her off and say, "Well, I'm sure you'll do a good job then." and you leave her before she can say anything more.

Does she not see? You're not a hero, nor will you ever be. If she doesn't want to have her hopes dashed, she should just stop believing in you right there.

_iv._

The Morbuzakh's vines are literally covering you from head to toe, but you can't concentrate on that. The only thing you can think of is that Nokama is dying, being smothered by that terrible vine. If it goes any higher on her, it will cover her mouth, block her air. She holds her head high in an attempt to stop this, eyes wide with fear.

You struggle harder against your own bonds, trying to reach her, to save her.

Nuju's eyes are on her too, so are Matau's. But none of you can help her.

With a muffled cry, Nokama's mouth is covered by the vines, and a strangled shout bursts from your throat. You regret your harsh words to her earlier, for this is the last time you will ever see her. You hang your head in shame, yet an awful feeling is growing inside of you.

Wrath. Rage. Fury. Anger. However it is said, it is still the same thing.

And you fervently wish now that you had enough energy to summon all your power in one fell burst, to burn this horrible plant until not even ash is left...

Then, somehow, Nuju is free, and he's slicing the vine away from Nokama. You give a yell of shock and elation that she is free, and she runs to help you, armed with her own blades.

She is beautiful as she hacks away at the plant, careful not to hit you. You ignore the impulse to pull her close and never let go, and instead choose an ice disk, loading it into your launcher to use on the Morbuzakh.

_v._

You're falling, and so is Matau. The stone rats are all squealing and clambering beneath you as you fall, so eager to take part in the meal that you and Matau shall make.

Nokama is screaming your name, and Whenua is holding her back from jumping over the edge of the cavern to rescue you. She can't fly. She'd just be another casualty that will have to somehow be rescued, and you can't have that.

Matau is an idiot, of that you're sure. But somehow he manages to bypass not only the stone rats but the Density Rahkshi as well, and you both come to a crash landing where Nokama and Whenua are. Nokama runs to catch you as you fall, so Matau is left to crash onto Whenua.

She manages to stay upright for a minute with you in her arms before overbalancing and falling to the floor with a yelp of surprise. When you open your eyes, hers are right there, obscuring everything else. They're so big, you think. So blue and clear. And it's all you can do to keep from hanging onto her and never letting go. She's so close to you, why should you?

But you vault off of her, laughing nervously, then offer her a hand to help her up. She takes it and thanks you, smiling at you, her eyes never once leaving yours.

You are still staring into each other's eyes when Onewa makes a reckless dash for freedom with Nuju to the cavern side where you stand.

_vi._

The Vahi is made, it seems, or so you think. You finally have a way to forge it! The Great Disks - the Great Disks that you six worked so hard to get are the key. Already you have combined the Fire and Water disks. Now to add Stone...

A hand on your shoulder, and you look up into the blue eyes of Nokama. She is concerned for you, but obviously bored of admiring Matau's newfound wings. Matau is standing a few feet away, waiting for the two of you.

"Are you coming?" she asked, holding her hand out to you again. This time, though, it is she that helps you up, not the other way around.

_vii._

You are the only one out of your group that doesn't have a mask power yet.

And on top of that, upon rescuing Toa - _TURAGA_ - Lhikan, he has informed you that you were wrong all along. He's not the "heart of Metru Nui".

The Matoran are, and the Matoran are gone. Where to, you don't know.

You run with your friends and the Turaga to the shore, your transport filled with canisters, each one carrying a single comatose Matoran.

As you run with all speed, wishing you weren't such a failure, a small hand slips into yours. You again see Nokama's blue eyes, and her hand is holding yours comfortingly. You smile gratefully and squeeze it.

Neither of you let go as you keep running. The comforting feeling radiating from her body is too much for you to do so; you want it to last forever.

_viii._

You wake up, panting, sweating, heart beating so wildly.

It's the eighty millionth time, you think exasperatedly as you shake your head. It's gotta be. What else could it be?

But even in a dream, she's just so inviting, so soft, so warm for the element of Water. Even in a dream, her lips against yours are soft and you can't help but want more and more as time goes on. The way she says your name as you break away for air and press your forehead against hers is even more intoxicating - it's like she's trying to convey all her feelings into that one little word.

And then, you wake up, panting because that dream's done more to you than you'd ever admit. You KNOW you admire her. Maybe even like her. But she's your best friend, and best friends aren't supposed to think about each other like that. Best friends don't have dreams like the ones you've been having.

Just what IS she to you?

_ix._

The look on her face as you stomp away hurts so much more than anything any of the others have said so far. She calls you back, _"VAKAMA!"_ but you ignore her and go onto all fours.

You run like a Rahi, but you don't care. You just have to get away.

You want so much to talk to her, to tell her all about it, to say what you want, to just get all the anger and frustration out, but you can't. She won't understand. She doesn't understand hatred.

But you do. You know what it's like to hate Makuta, who killed Toa Lhikan. You know what it's like to hate Nidhiki and Krekka, who captured him and threw him into a dank, smelly dungeon. You know what it's like to hate the Morbuzakh, and you know what it's like to hate Matau for all the mean things he says about you to make himself look good.

But Nokama doesn't. Nokama doesn't hate. Nokama is pure and gentle as the water she controls.

_x._

No matter how much Nokama doesn't understand hatred, you're pretty sure she hates you by now, even if she doesn't understand the feeling.

How could she not? You betrayed her, betrayed the team. You kidnapped five of the Rahaga and left Norik to die and be the bearer of bad news to your former friends.

Forget all your dreams. Forget the way your heart jumps when she looks at you. She hates you now, and it's all your fault.

_xi._

"VAKAMA!"

Her voice is like a beacon in fog, cutting through the haze of wrath that seems to hang about your mind all the time these days. For the first time in days, you are able to think clearly.

"Nokama?" You narrow your eyes at her figure, so small and blue down there in the Coliseum, surrounded by the rest of the Hordika. The poison that mutated her did nothing to hide how beautiful she was. The heavy black stone that's always lying on your chest is moving back and forth a bit. Your heart is beating fast as she stares up at you. Her eyes are even more bright and blue than you remembered.

Behind you, Roodaka snorts. "THAT is what you adore so much, Vakama?"

But you ignore her in favor of the female on the ground of the Coliseum, looking up at you with those great gems for eyes, her gaze never leaving you.

_xii._

"Nokama," you says as you approach her slowly. She turns to face you, and nudges a Matoran capsule onto the catwalk. Keetongu passes by, loaded with two capsules, one on each shoulder.

"Yes?" she asks with a smile. "Is something wrong, Vakama?"

The way she says your name...almost like she is caressing it.

You find you cannot take it any longer.

You pull her into your arms and make those annoying dreams of yours _reality_. At first she is shocked, her body going rigid, then it wears off and she wraps her arms around your neck, responding to your kiss with fervor.

Your arms are around her waist, holding her to you tightly. She is even warmer and softer than in your dreams. And she was awfully warm and soft in your dreams.

You break away for air, leaning your forehead against hers, and your name sighs from her lips, soft and yearning and full of love for you. It's like she's trying to convey all her feelings into that one little word.

To Karzahni with the Best Friends Code. To Karzahni with the fact that teammates are NOT, repeat, NOT allowed to love each other. To Karzahni with everything else that might try to come between you and her, including and not limited to Matau.

But you can't bring yourself to care about any of that right now. All that matters is that she's pressed her lips against yours again, and you allow yourself to surrender and simply kiss her back.

You and her have shared everything that has led up to this moment. The talks you've had, sharing dreams and thoughts and Mata Nui knows what else. You know more about her than she probably knows about herself by now; for instance, her habit of crossing her arms in front of her chest when she's embarrassed about something. Or the fact that when she's angry, her eyes flash and sparkle with passion.

This is the girl who doesn't know how to understand hatred. This is the one who you've admired for so long and never allowed yourself to realize it. This is the beauty you can't stop your love for.

None of that matters anymore.

In the end, there's nothing but her and you.

-

**AN: Wow. Boredom kicks in, eh? This is so NOT Halloween-ish, but guess what? I don't care. I've already got one "scary" project going on, and I don't need two. -sticks tongue out-**

**Review please!**


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